48 April 2011

A few weeks ago we dropped by David Rand’s barn. Our new bitting harness was back ordered and David had agreed to lend us one until ours came in.

Part of our group was 11-year-old Ariella Silber. So, despite the business of working 54 Morgans (yes, 54) David stops everything he and his crew are doing. “Get Teabiscuit,” he says. Everything in the long barn aisle changes direction. Special tack comes out. We are in for some fun. Teabiscuit is a black and white painted pony, part Hackney, part Shetland, and we will soon learn, a part of the exotic

collection of animals and birds that populate the Falmouth, Maine farm known as RAND. David has automatically connected that Ariella would enjoy seeing this pony (he may know that her own Shetland, Kitten, is the most spoiled animal at her family’s Kourt Jester Morgans). Teabiscuit, feisty, colorful, high stepping does not disappoint. Seeing David, at six foot two, in the cart behind the miniature animal is at once anomalous and pure David Rand entertainment. He pulls into

the center and tells Ariella to get into the cart behind the pony that they had just hooked for the first time on Christmas day (yes, that’s what they did on Christmas day at RAND).

Above: David Rand riding reigning Park Harness World Champion Merriehill Home Stretch at home in Falmouth, Maine; Teabiscuit has a conversation with David and Adam Sherman during a photo shoot (photos © Dave & Andy).

Opposite page: David gets a hug from Sandy Hendrick after a great Saturday ride on one of her show horses in training.

u Trainer Q & a u

the man in the mirror

Getting to know Morgan trainer David Rand By Stephen Kinney

The Morgan Horse 49

Sensing that Ariella is about to say, “But I don’t drive...” David presses into full gear. “This is not hard. You pull left to go left, right to go right and pull back to stop. Now jump in the cart.” Weeks later, Ariella is still talking about Teabiscuit and she is searching the web for a husband for Kitten that might produce more “knee action.” (The day was further interrupted for a visit to the kennel where there were four eight-week old puppies and four four-week old puppies, not to mention side-visits to see the minis, the mule and one very territorial rooster.)

This is not an unusual moment in a day at David Rand’s, a day that is devoted to working one of the

largest (if not the largest) strings of Morgan show horses in the nation, instructing the numerous clients and students that belong to the string of horses, but a day which is never too serious to involve roosters, guinea hens, a kennel full of English Springer Spaniels and the most vocal member of the team, Bing, the Blue and Gold talking parrot. It is day that is big time work and long hours but, as assistant trainer Adam Sherman notes, “everyone is having fun.”

A few weeks later, on a Saturday, I drop by to grab a few candids for this article. When I arrive,

seven-year-old Kelsie Fielder is taking a lesson on the back of Merriehill Hooligan. You have to wonder, given that she was not yet born when he was last English Pleasure World Champion in 2001, if Kelsie knows how famous a Morgan (just inducted into the Morgan Show Horse Hall of Fame) she sits astride. David’s day will be a busy one. The center of the heated arena is filled with at least a dozen people, including Adam Sherman who has recently joined the team as assistant trainer. One after another, several of them will be having lessons on their horses that look like they should get on a van and go to a show at any moment, they are so ready in mid-March. In between, David will work horses; some owned by the people standing in the center (such as Pete and Sandy Hendrick’s super colt Queen’s Soul Mate); and others simply on his roster for the day (Park Harness World

Trainer Q & a: man in the mirror

50 April 2011

Trainer Q & a: man in the mirror

Champion Merriehill Home Stretch being prepared for his under saddle debut; Pleasure Driving World Champion Dragonsmeade Carnegiehall, being prepared for English Pleasure 13 & Under). From beginning to end, it’s an impressive horse show. A better day’s entertainment would be hard to come by, at least if you are a groupie of the high stepping persuasion.

f you know RAND by the eponymous barn’s show ring reputation, you know David puts a lot of horses and a lot of horse and rider combinations into the ring with uncommon

success. To get to be part of this day at home is to hear the full vocabulary of words and skills that links the cause to the final effect. Lest you think the job of training 54 horses and combining most of them with amateur or junior exhibitor pairings is a formulaic matter, the instructions being given are consistent with the classical paradigm that the legs create the forward that the bridle merely harnesses. To wit:

“Find the middle ground. All or nothing doesn’t work.”“Don’t hang on your bridle. Loosen your hands up and ride with your legs.”“Soften your grip, lift your leg off the saddle. Step on your stirrups, make those legs move again.”“Be tight with you legs and your horse will feel constricted. Ride light.”“Don’t press with your seat, push with your legs.”“Not fast. Just forward.”And a favorite, “What you ask with your hands, back up with your legs.”

In all of his instruction you do not hear the word ‘no.’ You do hear a lot of praise and positive reinforcement. High fives and hugs are frequent after dismounts. In between things, lunch arrives and gets put out on the golf cart. Show mom Deb Warner threatens to stop baking (she’s brought a spice bread for everyone that day) and David admonishes her for having such a “selfish” thought, suggests she needs to keep thinking about others instead. We can’t find Pete Hendrick, turns out he’s back at the stall spending bonding time with his pride and joy, the aforementioned, and apparently appropriately named, Soul Mate. George Liberty arrives lugging the Western saddle he got for Christmas, taking two rides, then sitting down on a bench to tell David and partner Jason Douglass about last night’s Masked Ball at his high school. From time to time someone gets up to leave, there are hugs all round and then the person hears what horse is coming out next and decides to stay instead. The organizing factor in what, in other hands, might be mayhem, is the personality of the man in charge. It couldn’t all happen the way it does without his amazing energy. The fact that he is unfailingly cordial (one day there Kristen and David Cater introduced him to a friend traveling with them and he greeted her

with a hug, as he does everyone, not with a handshake) means that it is his instinct to be inclusive of the needs of everyone present. He remains positive to the end of the long days and says that part of the reason for that is he is very satisfied that his barn life and his social life are one and the same. In the end, the point about talking about the horses, hens, peacocks, dogs, minis and birds, is that it does not take just personality and organization to run a place like RAND. It takes a deeply embedded love of animals. Otherwise, no one would do it. A few days before this, the trainer’s issue of The Morgan Horse, was due to send to press, David sat down for the interview that follows, about what drives him to run one of the largest and most successful training barns in our industry:

You work 54 horses, how do you do it?David: I have a really good crew. It is super organized—length of days, older horses, younger horses, ones that need breaks, ones

that don’t—we work six days a week. I think the organization of my crew having horses available to me one right after another that I can get on and go with, is how we can get those numbers accomplished. I got to those numbers out of wanting to do the best and the most I could for everybody, it just evolved to that place. Probably, it’s a very impractical

number for the level of care and training that you need to put into this to keep going physically and emotionally. I have done it, but it certainly is draining and takes up the whole day. The key to working that many horses is being organized and having people that you trust work for you so you know the other levels of care are attended to. I can just focus on what comes to me. I don’t have a lot of office work to deal with, I don’t have a lot of care to deal with, I can just focus on one horse after another and their training when they come up to the arena. That’s what I have to do. If there’s a red flag, someone brings that to me, we deal with it at the end of the day.

Do you ever have a situation where you just absolutely have to stop what you are doing and give a horse two hours?David: Yes. Those are days we bump 10 off the board. And you know, it’s not 54 horses a day, but I guess we average 40 horses a day. And there are times that yes, I need to get this accomplished with an animal and it took longer—or this lesson or this phone call. Those days we pick a few that there is not time for, except for them to get groomed and their clothes changed and a once over to make sure everything is healthy. Although they are all handled daily, it is a rare day all 54 horses get my hands on them. I’ve got some wonderful true blue equine workers who know their jobs. I’ve got some horses that can be conditioned on one day; there are some that can work every other day, there are young ones that need to work every day.

A view down the aisle of the main barn at RAND.

I

52 April 2011

RAND WORLD CHAMPIONS(Top to bottom, left to right) Merriehill Hooligan; LPS The Boogie Man, Lamborghini In Black; Dragonsmeade Carnegiehall;

Cherished Assets; Nicoria; TTMF French Enchantress; BKC Valiant Star; Queen’s Victorian Lady; Lookaway’s Hot Ticket; Briar Oaks Pep In My Step Tolstoy. (Photos © Howard Schatzberg & Debbie Uecker-Keough)

Trainer Q & a: man in the mirror

54 April 2011

Trainer Q & a: man in the mirror

Certainly everybody who comes to my stable is completely trusting of me and of my judgment. So no one questions me if their horse gets worked six days a week or four days a week. One of the things we do is try to keep everyone’s needs in mind so we can know where we have to be. There are sometimes I have to up the ante and push on a horse so they are ready for their amateur to ride, and there are other times when it is better to back off, let some horses just do some easy work, or work with Adam or one of my guys, work in a bitting rig, just jog that day, that sort of thing.

I’ve often said to people that you have to like a trainer, but before you send a horse someplace you have to know and trust the culture of that barn, that there are a lot of other people spending as much or more time with your horse than the trainer. What roll does the background staff play at Rand?David: When I worked for Abbott (Wilson) he used to say “Great help makes great horse trainers.” It was something I took as a big compliment, being his help and having a good season. And I do believe that great help makes a great horse trainer. If I had to worry about all the incidentals of the care of horses or the running of this place, it would be very different. I can keep a scope on it, but I can’t do it all. I have such a great crew who are so conscientious, who have the same goal of being successful and all of us doing a good job. Without that all of this couldn’t work. At the end of the day they want to make this place, RAND, not David Rand, but RAND as a whole, someplace great. It’s because of them, and they feel like it’s because of them, that it’s great. And they do take ownership of their work and their role here, whether it’s Kelsey, Adam or this group of guys. This bunch of guys keep the lights on well after I’m back in my house in the evening.

Speaking of which how many people does it take to do this?Seven guys, Kelsey, Adam, myself, and Jason does most of the paper work and the book work.

The next question is now that Adam is here, what’s in his job description?David: I happened to be in the quest of finding a partner, who is really more than an assistant, someone who could work with me and cared about the outcome of this place as much as I do. I was trying to find someone who was ready and willing to put their life into a place. I love what I do, but I really want to share that with someone who wants to be part of that team. That was one of the requirements. I was interviewing this last time and, having gone through a bunch of young people who wanted to apprentice, I was looking for someone who could feel they were as much a part of something as I am. I think that is the role that Adam is ready for

in his life and what he found attractive was that he could step into a place where he could have a say. It wasn’t about him having his own string of horses, it was about us working each horse together and making them all the best they can be. That’s the overall vision I had of having an assistant. I was on the hunt for a long time. The numbers were so great and it could be such a pressure cooker and I know it was intimidating. After Oklahoma I truly did say, ‘Forget it. This is a great opportunity and someone is going to want to work here and if they don’t, I’ll scale back with the numbers that I can maintain without losing my mind.’ Then a friend of mine, Jennifer Dixon, called and said, ‘You

know, Adam is wanting to maybe come out and check things out.’ There’s something to be said for just turning it all over to the gods and saying what will be, will be. Adam did call and we did start a dialogue.

David, you’ve had assistants before, and there has always been the perception that you do all the riding. With Adam stepping into that role more actively, there must be a need to do things alike, for there to be commonality in the training method.David: There needs to be fluidity of our mutual training together. If he is going to work the horses, which he is, then it’s easier for everybody if he does it along the lines of how I do it. I think that has been a little bit of a learning curve, to learn a different way and to see the cause and effects of the way I do things in my program with my horses. We’re still in that process. He is taking on the way I do things and understanding them, so therefore it is becoming more natural and each week it becomes more fluid for him to get on a horse and follow me. I can watch him work a horse and it is where I would want that horse to be.

There’s got to be some fun to be able to throw another trainer up on some horses you’re working and see them go. You threw Adam up on Cherished Assets when I was here the other day.David: Right. One of the big release valves for me is to be able to not panic when I have a phone call come in and five horses get jammed up. Now, all of a sudden, I’m on the phone and out comes a horse, and it’s working well, and it’s a blast, and it’s fun. And I can be on the ground and doing a lot of stuff and helping and getting to see these horses. I don’t normally get to see what they look like, for good or bad, and that has been really fun for me. I’ve been relinquishing some control and that has its plus and minuses for me. I’m still in the ebb and tide of it. I’m leaving on vacation this weekend, how is that all going to go and what do I turn over and what do I say do or not do? I think Adam is more than capable of stepping in when I’m not here, which is a wonderful feeling at this point in my life and career.

(Top to bottom) David Rand; David poses a young horse.

THE RAND POSSE(Top to bottom, left to right) Adam, Kelsey Ramsey and David; Moniqua Dube, David, Casey McDonald and Adriana Liberty;

Dan, Hannah and Leslie Kelley; Grace Steere and Sandy Hendrick; Brandon and Leslie Kelley with George Liberty; Jack and Carol Gatewood; Jason Douglass, Casey Douglass and David; Jason Douglass and Diana Davidson; The Tassinari Family; Pauline Dube & Jason Douglass;

Sandy Hendrick, David and Erin Kelly; Gail Liberty, Grace Steere and Carol Gatewood.

56 April 2011

Trainer Q & a: man in the mirror

58 April 2011

Trainer Q & a: man in the mirror

Walk us through a Friday at Grand National from the time you arrive in the morning until the time you leave at night. You have 30 horses there. What’s a day at a horse show like? What do you bring that lets you get through the long days, highs and lows, professional and social interaction?David: I guess it’s passion. It’s the way I’m chemically made. Our days start at Grand National at 3:00 in the morning and we work horses before the show. There are low points of the day when people are dispersed between the sessions and I’ll sit on the couch and close my eyes for 10 minutes. But the people, the excitement of the horse show, the need to work and do my best and just my love of it all. I will give my clients a huge amount of credit for knowing when they need to let me go. I can be in the middle of it and it hits me and I say I’ve got to go. I can get up and walk out and everyone says good night, and they can still continue on and have a good night or a good time. That is a huge gift that they give me, which is to let me do my thing and be me at the horse shows. I can be all up in it, but when I’ve had enough they let me go. It’s a long day, but I’m just wired that way, with that much energy. I do wonder about the day when that isn’t there, what will I do. But so far, knock on wood, it has not happened.

A lot of people who read our magazine are not part of the group that is familiar with taking 30 plus horses to Grand National. Is there a key to keeping that many horses performing?David: They ship in and rest and get body clipped and we get set up. I always fight the urge to jump in. I don’t work my horses until Friday and we start showing on Saturday. People will be working their horses, and I sit there watching horses, thinking, ‘Maybe I need to get them out of their stalls.’ But I fight that. It is such a long week; it is such a long trip from Maine to Oklahoma; it is a struggle, but I do hold to it. I want my horses to look like they want to get out of their stalls before I get to them. I go on the thought that it is Oklahoma. I’ve been working toward this all year. They know what they have to do. In-hand is Saturday. Three to four days into working them, I’m back on track and that puts me into mid-week and I’m right where I need to be.

Do you make more money training 54 horses?David: No, oddly. I work 54 horses because that’s what people have asked me to do. There’s not more money in it. It takes more help, more bedding, more hay, more grain, more electricity, more heat, more man hours, more everything. There’s a sweet spot. I think it’s like 22 where you make your money. Beyond that it just becomes more overhead, more that you need, more that you have to do.

I think there is more of a financial gain with my numbers for horse shows. With the numbers we take to horse shows, that is good pay. But the at home numbers, we struggle all winter to get through financially. We go through a tractor trailer load of shavings a week, a load of hay a month, we keep a full staff on year round.

I think that’s a surprising admission to people who look at the numbers in at RAND and say ‘wow.’

David: Right, I have a very nice home, I drive a nice car, but I did that at 25 horses. When I was at Ramsey’s I had the same financial lifestyle that I have up here. I choose not to have the free time to do the things I used to find entertaining. With this farm, it’s become my life. My going to dinner is my free time, is my social time, is my client time. Ninety-eight percent of my life is this place. If there is more money in it, I spend more money on having this place and the number of horses and keeping the place up to a level where people would want to come and spend their time. I feel my clients come and it is not just about them wanting to ride their horse for ten minutes. It is about them wanting to come and spend the day. To have a facility that is clean, and tidy and comfortable to be around, where it is not freezing cold. It is their social life, more so than mine, and this place is kept up for them, which is part of why we have been successful. I’m happy to have the lifestyle that I have, so it works out both ways.

I hope you take this in the flattering meaning of the word, because that is how it is intended. But when I think of you, one of the things I think of is confidence. You just used the word passion. But I think it takes a lot of confidence to buy and trade expensive horses on other people’s behalf. To win at the level that you win at. You obviously have a lot of confidence in your riders and your horses because you put a lot of them in the ring, especially in Oklahoma and Northampton. Where do you think that comes from?

David: It’s funny, because I think people do have a different perspective on the outside than how it actually is on the inside. Obviously, by the choice of my profession, I’m competitive by nature. And I always go to win. Which is why anyone would go to any kind of competition. As far as me being this confident person, I know that I come across that way. But I don’t think of myself as a very confident person. I do work at trying to put my best foot out there. But I am actually quite insecure and nervous to talk to people. Even my peers, who I know respect me, I still have a difficult time understanding that they would know who I am or would want to hang out or chat. I know there is a confidence that comes across, but I don’t quite know how it got there.

(Top to bottom) Adam aboard Cherished Assets; Jason Doug-

lass and David; Shannon Fielder begins her Saturday lesson.

60 April 2011

I think all of us have a much different self-perception than what the public perception is. When I used the word confidence I didn’t mean any of the negative associations with the word. There have been times in your history where I’ve seen you buy a horse for someone and my private thought was ‘Man, Rand has just bitten off more than he can chew,’ and next year there it is winning a world championship with an amateur on its back. You obviously knew you could get a job done.David: I think it is just about grit. ‘Well, I’ve done this and now it has to work.’ It’s always about the end result. This has to happen. That’s how I look at life. There’s no gray area. This is what I’ve done so I’ve got to do it. You know, can’t lives on won’t street and no is not an option, it has to happen. I always believe there is a way and I always find a way. I’ve made Jason crazy. I’ve made Crystal crazy. I’ve made people crazy, but they say ‘It can’t be done’ and I say, ‘Are you kidding me, they can put a man on the moon!’ But super confident I am not. I still feel like a young kid training. I still do. I didn’t grow up in Morgans. Whether I’m talking to Lynn (Peeples) or Keith (Nelsen) or even Bob Kellert, who is one of my best friends, who are just a little bit older than me, I still feel like a young kid who is doing OK but is still earning my stripes with some of these people who are so well established. All of these people are genuinely nice people who love me and I love them, but there is a level of insecurity that goes with me with all of this. But I guess when I’m showing, it’s about going through that ingate to have the best show we can have.

Reinventing horses: The other day I watched Dragonsmeade Carnegiehall being prepared to be a 13 & under English pleasure horse, though we all know he is an aggressive driving horse that can take hold of a bridle and challenge an adult driver. Intrepid Dynasty, Gradell’s Wild Reflection, Lamborghini In Black, JW Rare Review have all had long and diverse careers in your care. What’s the philosophy behind this? How do you

WELCOMEADAM SHERMAN

Adam Sherman is a well-known presence in the Morgan industry and now he is working alongside David Rand, as assistant trainer. Adam first came on the scene as an equitation rider in the Northeast,

but he is best known for his long association with Rock Walker Stables and Blackridge in California. He strayed from the horse industry for a while with a stint as both a personal trainer and model in Southern California. But the pull of the show world and his love of horses brought him back. “One of the big things for me when I came here was obviously David has a big love of animals, and not just the four legged kind,” Adam jokes as Bing, the parrot sounds noisy approval in the background. Another part of the appeal is the atmosphere in David’s barn and the work ethic of his colleagues: “I’ve never seen a group of guys who love what they do, love the animals, take such great pride in their work. It’s just such a happy vibe, the energy; I can’t say enough great things.” His move to Maine from sunny California has gone seamlessly: “It is such a fun atmosphere. Music going on. Guys all smiling and having fun. Horses working great one after another. I wake up wanting to come to work. I think that is a huge important thing. I look forward to learning from David.” n

Trainer Q & a: man in the mirror

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Trainer Q & a: man in the mirror

make it happen, how do you give a horse a set of retreads?David: I have a vision that I see in them. And then again, it’s the attitude of making it happen, there’s not an option. It’s reconditioning, reshaping, retraining and all of that takes time and is a process for an end result. Carnegiehall is basically a take hold driving horse, he’s beautiful in harness, so how do we make him ride, and let go of his bridle and think and stay on his leads? That’s just repetition. Doing the unexpected, I guess, I love to do that. I love to have the unexpected work. Not that it always does, but I love to have those horses that are on the line where others might say ‘that’s never going to work’ and you know we’ll make it work. That’s challenging for me and I love it. I think people love challenges. We do this for the accolades, so to do something no one else has done, people find that challenging and that challenge is why they do this.

You said something the other day about what you are doing with World Champion Stallion LPS The Boogie Man, that it is just about him needing to have a career.David: We brought him out as a three-year-old and bang, bang, bang he was World Champion Stallion four times. Now that we had accomplished greatness, what do you do with this beautiful animal? His owner enjoys having him out there and having him appreciated. So what do you do with him? You try to find the best spot where he could be the most competitive and represent himself without taking away from what he’s already accomplished. I think that is the trick, to not take away from what they already are. He was Reserve World Champion Pleasure Driving, but that wasn’t a home run. We did park harness when he was a three-year-old and that wasn’t a home run. I rode him, but being six foot two I don’t think that was a pretty picture. We’re trying this Western Pleasure thing, because I believe this horse will be as much a stand out there as he was in-hand. He’s given me everything I’ve asked of him. His owner and his people would still like to see him and what he represents to the Morgan breed, so finding a place where he can be successful makes sense. I think because of his quality and style he will be a stand out in that. I think, whether he wins or looses, people will say ‘I want to go see The Boogie Man show.’ I think it will get people into the seats and appreciate what the Morgan breed itself has to offer.

You set a record with Lamborghini, winning both the open and the junior exhibitor, talk about what that means. What Lamborghini means?David: It was all Grace (Steere). She came to me at Northampton and said, ‘I saw this black horse. Rick Lane was riding him in the morning mist. I don’t remember his name. I just remember he was beautiful’. And I was all, ‘Really?’ I couldn’t think who it might be. And then I thought it has to be Lamborghini In Black and I said, ‘Grace, he’s used up, he’s been sick. I don’t think he’d be viable.’

I went to Rick, because that is what horse trainers do, and said, ‘Can Lamborghini be bought?’ and he said yes and I thought, ‘I don’t know where this will go but I’ll put the ball in motion.’ It was a time in Grace’s life when this horse really spoke to her. He had his issues, so we sent him off to a specialist to pre-purchase him and he said don’t buy him. We bought him anyway. We had him for a month and worked him and I said to Grace, ‘You know he can’t get his wind.’ So we sent him off to the vet who had worked on Barbero. They felt they could help him, but it was a ‘kill him or cure him’ kind of situation. We can either help this horse or he might die from more pneumonia. I thought it was a risk we were all willing to take, the horse included. I could feel it when I was working him that he had so much to give, but he couldn’t get his air. As much as I

wanted the chance and Grace wanted the chance, I felt the horse wanted a chance. So we did all of that and he healed up and put him back to work. Once that horse could get air, he wrote the story for me. It’s been a wonderful ride. It has been nothing but conditioning that animal and keeping him happy and doing his thing. It was all about him being able to get air. I hope that I helped to refine and condition and make that horse reach heights that he didn’t think he could ever reach, but I will say I have just been hanging on his coattails. He’s been a true champion and one of the most special horses I have worked in my career. And it was such a surprise. I knew he was nice, but I just didn’t realize the magnitude of the heart of that animal. It jumped me up. To be able to win the Open Park Saddle in a very competitive year and to do it twice. The second time after a kid had ridden him and after he was gelded. You know he went from being the black park saddle stallion and throwing down a lot of great horses, to getting gelded and being a great junior exhibitor park saddle horse, but never loosing that whole spark, which Lamborghini will always have. He is a

great animal and I’m grateful that Grace saw him.

You are a big time trainer of major show horses, but you seem to love working with kids. Many, like Kelsey Ramsey and the Liberty kids are major long-term relationships. Talk about that?David: I do love working with people and kids. I think having a relationship with them and mattering in their life is important. I really relate to the challenge of kids and some long term clients and relationships—like Kelsey and the whole Ramsey family. To still have the Ramsey family 20 years later, to have moved from their farm to my own farm and Ray still has five horses here and Mitch has two and Kelsey is here sweating it out seven days a week. I don’t know what the component is of that longevity, but I do know that I am an extremely loyal person, and long-term relationships are very important to me, and I do work hard at maintaining them and making them grow, and I get the most out of the relationships

(Top to bottom) Dragonsmeade Carnegiehall with David and

Adam; David on Queen’s Soul Mate with Sandy and

Pete Hendrick.

64 April 2011

Trainer Q & a: man in the mirror

that I can. I’ve always seen my life or seen things on a long-term scale, versus a short-term scale. I have a very hard time letting go.

Client relations? You represent some major barns and some top breeders. They come to you for an entire family’s recreation or to prove a breeding herd of horses. Beyond showing and hopefully winning, what is the nature of these relationships?David: Like-minded people I guess. Pete and Sandy (Hendrick), outside the horses, we have the same kind of thought processes about life and relationships and loyalty and family. Whether it is Queens River or DanTree or Ramseys, they are all very solid families and have a core family belief, and I think that is what ties them into the Morgans because Morgans are such a family breed. I think it attracts those types of people. I’m one of those types of people and I think I relate really well to those type of relationships. The strength of our personal relationships keep my professional relationships in tact.

Talk to us about all the other animals. Are you just an adolescent animal lover who has never grown up? David: Animals. Animals. Who doesn’t love animals? I don’t know, I’ve always loved animals to a fault. If I had a thousand acres in Montana, I’d have a thousand acres of animals. I don’t think I’m eccentric with it. I just love the company of animals, whether it’s the dogs, or the parrot, or feeding the wild birds at the bird feeder, or my peacocks or chickens, I really love the essence of a farm and I think animals represent that. So having chickens running around or geese in the middle of the ring while I’m giving lessons or the rooster chasing people, I love animals and try to keep them in my life. I think the connection we all possess in our industry with animals is huge. I have that with the horse. I think that training horses has become my job and I think having other animals has become my recreation.

You have show dogs, you raise them and you send them out to dog trainers to show them. How does that feel, as a professional horseman, having that relationship?David: I would say having the dogs and establishing a relationship with a trainer and me being a client, has been a really big plus for my business. It’s made me a little bit more aware of a customer’s needs. When my trainer doesn’t call me with results or to say how my dog is doing, or doesn’t respond right away to a text message or when I’m not getting feedback from my trainer, it does get to be a little anxious. Like, I’d like to know how my dog’s doing. When you have to write a check every month, you think, ‘Is this worth it?’ It

has been an interesting component to my business and I think it’s made me a better professional by having to be a customer. It’s fun for me because I can go to the dog show and watch the dogs and have competition, but I don’t have the pressure. It doesn’t matter for me, win or lose, I’m just the customer. Obviously, I want my dog to do well, but I love my handler and I love my dog and I’m putting in the ring what I’d like to see for the standard of my breed. I think that is parallel with the horses. It gives me the opportunity to be a customer and then to take that perspective and put it back

into my business as a horse trainer.

For the record you show...David: English Spring Spaniels. It’s a breed that I’ve always loved and always had throughout my life and always wanted to have a show dog. It’s like having a show horse. You get caught up with owning it, and then it becomes your pet and then you can’t part with it. I went through a series of ‘pets’ and then I met people and got involved, and it’s been a work in progress until now when we have dogs and breed dogs. There are the special dogs that you breed and will always keep. Then there are ones you breed that you want to have in other people’s lives, representing you out there. So, it’s like breeding show horses, but it’s much faster and cheaper than breeding horses for sure. But it’s been a fun, fun thing.

Should trainers own horses? What has owning a few meant to you personally and as a businessman?David: I do own horses, we have a couple broodmares that we breed. It’s so expensive. When you have a farm you can keep them without having to pay board on them. You can have horses like the three-year-old filly you saw who is very, very nice, but the others that may have not turned out are part of the expense of getting the one that is really nice. The way that it works is that I own the farm. We do own five or six horses, and I need to keep strict parameters on that. You have to keep it in check. It’s easy to let it get ahead of you.

I’ve been to farms where they say such and such a horse put in the new driveway or bought the new roof.David: I have not yet had that opportunity (laughing). But I hope to soon. I keep playing that lottery ticket. That is why we do this. That chance to pay down the mortgage or building another barn. Breeding horses is like playing the lottery. Hopefully they’ll call our number soon.

And with that perfect final analogy, we conclude and David packs his bag for his fist trip to Vegas the next day. Seriously! n

(Top to bottom) David with Bing the parrot

and one of his minis.

The Morgan Horse 65

Trainer Q & a: man in the mirror